High Blood Pressure

Few things have a more negative effect on your health than high blood pressure. At Northside Primary Care, residents of Northport, Alabama, have an invaluable resource in Christine Falls, FNP-BC, and Alisha Marie Moore, CRNP, FNP-BC. To experience one of the best ways to reach and maintain healthy blood pressure levels, put yourself in the care of these highly skilled medical providers. Call or click online today to get started. 

What is high blood pressure?

To understand high blood pressure, it helps to envision how your heart moves blood throughout your body. Every time your heart beats, it pumps oxygenated blood into your arteries. This pumping action creates a force on the arterial walls. If your arteries become partially clogged, the restricted space causes a rise in pressure.

The force during each heartbeat is your systolic blood pressure; the force in the pause between heartbeats is your diastolic blood pressure. These two measurements, designated as systolic/diastolic, create your blood pressure readings. 

Readings below 120/80 are considered normal. When your blood pressure rises above 130/90, you’re considered to have high blood pressure or hypertension. As those readings continue to rise, so does the risk of serious health complications, including:

• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Sleep disruption
• Sexual dysfunction
• Dementia
• Diabetes
• Eye problems

Hypertension is known as a “silent killer” because a serious health crisis is often the first indication that something is wrong. Routine physical exams offer the best way to monitor your blood pressure and give you the information needed to reduce the risk of negative outcomes. 

Are there medications that can reduce high blood pressure?

Medications can help bring your blood pressure down to healthier levels. It often takes a combination of medications to achieve optimal results and a period of trial and error to determine the best drug therapy for your specific needs. 

While drug therapy is a good fit for many needs, medications also carry a risk of side effects. Many of the drugs used to control blood pressure create negative interactions with other medications. Once you need to rely on multiple different drugs to treat a range of health issues, medication management becomes far more challenging. 

How can lifestyle modifications help with high blood pressure?

You can successfully reduce your blood pressure with meaningful lifestyle modifications. Begin with an objective review of your diet. Then replace highly processed foods with fruit, vegetables, healthy fats, and lean proteins.

It’s also critical to get enough exercise every day to help metabolize your food and maintain a healthy weight. It also enhances your sleep quality and helps reduce stress. 

To learn more about your current blood pressure and how to make improvements, schedule a visit at Northside Primary Care online or by phone today.